4m Britons consider fraudulent home insurance claims

Of these people, 4% (or 1.5 million) admit they would consider making a false claim – or had already done so – regardless of the economic climate.

Worryingly, almost 780,000 people have already defrauded their home insurer by successfully making a false insurance claim in the last five years.

Peter Harrison, insurance expert at MoneySupermarket, said: "It’s extremely concerning to discover so many people are contemplating making a false or exaggerated claim on their home insurance.

"With recent news the UK has slipped into a double-dip recession, household finances will undoubtedly be stretched, but no matter how tempting, fabricating a claim for a payout is illegal, and you could face being prosecuted as a result."

Insurance companies take fraud very seriously, no matter how big or small the amount being claimed for. If insurers are suspicious of a claim’s validity it will be investigated with specialist detection processes and anti-fraud technology.

Anyone caught and found guilty of insurance fraud would find it extremely difficult to get insurance cover in the future. Previous convictions for insurance fraud must be disclosed on application forms for any type of insurance. Insurance premiums will be much more expensive for someone guilty of making a false claim, and in some cases insurers may not be willing to offer cover at all.

Harrison said: "Perhaps people feel their dishonesty only impacts the insurer but this couldn’t be further from the truth. Insurance fraud increases the cost of premiums for honest consumers as insurers look to re-coup the money paid out on false claims.

"There is also the risk of someone with a conviction for insurance fraud being unable to get insurance cover in the future. For a homeowner, being declined buildings insurance would go against the terms of your mortgage, and for a driver, not having valid car insurance would leave them unable to take to the road as it’s illegal to drive without valid insurance. The repercussions of making a fraudulent insurance claim are severe and I urge consumers not to take the risk."